It's true to say that there are many books on the visions of the Virgin Mary and the Marion phenomenon doing the rounds just now, all of them equally detailing this subject. I can't of course vouch for those books, good though they may be but what I can do is to tell you that if they are just half as good as this one, then they will be doing just fine.

This book is different, very different; it's not your normal one author who has penned this work, no siree. This book has been written by a number of 'different authors' each of whom bring to bear their own take on what happened back in the Portuguese village of Fatima back in 1917. Or in other words, this is a compilation of essays each with their own author's spin, each providing a thought provoking insight into the many and numerous alternative explanations to account for what was seen on that eventful day. For me as a reviewer, I found this a pleasant and welcome change to just the normal one off explanation that is driven home by one singular author. The essays/papers in this book have been 'peer reviewed' and have been gathered together by a group calling themselves 'Project Marion'. Project Marion is co-ordinated by CTEC (Centre for Transdisiplinary Studies In Consciousness which is based at the University of Fernando Pessona in Porto Portugal.

This book also features a number of the world's top UFOlogists and their theories as to what happened at Fatima. This book is the third of a trilogy of books on this subject which initially started off with a few e-mails between some researchers and It blossomed from there. The discipline of UFOlogy into Marion phenomenon is perhaps not that different when we look at what is described. The presence of an other worldly 'being', bright lights, and other such phenomena are to some degree, pretty much the same as this book shows. For those who may not know what happened at Fatima all those years ago, this brief synopsis will hopefully provide an insight.

THE FATIMA INCIDENT.

On October 17th 1917, an estimated 70,000 people gathered together at Fatima (a small town north of Lisbon in Portugal) to watch a phenomenon of which some described as 'The Miracle of The Sun' People saw numerous things from a luminous ball of light, to the Virgin Mary, Jesus, Joseph and much more. A torrential downpour drenched all 70,000 people, however when this light phenomenon swopped down on the startled crowds, each and every one of the 70,000 crowd found that their clothes became instantly dry. There was telepathic communication between the Virgin Mary and many of the witnesses which by modern UFO comparisons is quite similar. There was also a strange 'buzzing sound' which entered some of the witnesses ears, again similar to some UFO close encounters. One of the three main witnesses to whom these incredible visions occurred Lucia, stated that this apparition Virgin Mary call it what you will, told her that World War 1 would end that day, it didn't ! Again something similar to what some alleged 'aliens' claim to tell their startled human witnesses. Incidentally this phenomenon was witnessed from over 20 miles away!! And the light phenomenon was to some, quite painful ! 'The images of Saints were seen along the edges of the luminosity in the region produced by the ionization of the air'

During the months before this event, local villagers reported strange severe claps of thunder and odd pops and bangs, and a luminous ball was seen near the area where the later events would occur where it then headed off down the valley. This and many more events occurred around this time far too many to name here, suffice it to say, this book goes into all what happened that days and the days before in greater detail.

As stated above, after the book gives the reader the facts of this event and shows us how incredible these visions were, (real or not) One things for sure, there is absolutely no denying in any way shape or form that what was seen that day WAS SEEN. There was no mass psychosis no trickery. We're not talking about a few witnesses here, we're talking about thousands. Thousands of people from all walks of life and who were subjected to some kind of phenomenon, but what was it.

The book then goes into a roller coaster ride of theories, speculations and scientific fact on areas which all can fit in and to some degree in their own small way; possibly explain what happened that day. We look at seismic activity ball lightning, luminous lights, we also look at the stimulation of the temporal lobes of some of the witnesses (did this stimulation on some of the witnesses make them think that they had seen the Blessed Virgin Mary, from here on in the BVM) ? One of the three main witnesses, little Jacinta sadly suffered a lung cancer shortly after this light phenomenon, was this due to her closeness to this luminous phenomenon? We also learn that some Canadian researchers did a test where they placed some people's head into a cone shaped device of which a short burst of microwave radiation entered their skulls after which they said they heard a clear 'buzzing noise' inside their head (just like the Fatima witnesses) So was some kind of short wave microwave radiation in play that day? Again the feeling by some of a 'close presence' alien presence call it what you will when the temporal lobes are electrically stimulated creates this feeling of a presence, again some authors ask, was there some kind of localized electromagnetic effect in place that day ? Are some geographical areas more prone to emitting this effect than others, all of which can induce in the startled observer these peculiar feelings, something akin to the theories written about by an old mate of mine, Albert Budden? In other words, can the Earth's own magnetic field, under certain conditions trigger electrical disturbances within the brain creating a false reality?

Another contributor to this book, Auguste Meessen Ph.D speculates that we shouldn't rule out the Extraterrestrial hypothesis. He speculates that it's not within the bounds of credulity that perhaps the 'aliens' (call them what you will) may have undertaken some kind of 'experiment' that day (a psyco-social experiment) which was implemented to test our reactions and beliefs about Religious matters. Yes a bit far fetched I'm sure but nonetheless intriguing when we put all the other elements in this book together.

Did you know (I certainly didn't) that what happened at Fatima was not the only place where these 'Miracles Of The Sun' have occurred? For instance, here are but a few places where other such events have happened.

Did you know for instance (as Irene Blinston Ph.D) informs us, that from 1990 to 1999 at least 392 cases of apparitions of the Virgin Mary were reported and Investigated by the Catholic Church. 95 of those cases involved children. And let us not forget; as she goes on to inform us, that two of the world's religions were formed with religious apparitions, Islam and Mormonism. She also states that both Mohammad and Joseph Smith had visitations with an 'angel' Are we to disregard what has gone on before with other witnesses?

Author Auguste Meessen then tried something so dangerous in the name of science that had he continued to do this, he would have gone blind! He stared at the Sun (admittedly low on the horizon) and what was the results of this dangerous experiment? Well you'll need to read the book to find out. Another author, Raul Berenguel then postulates about ultrasound and informs the reader about ultrasound techniques that were implemented by the American troops on the Iraqi troops during the first Gulf War to induce fears of despondency and desperation. We also learn from this author that an American modified C-130 aircraft emitted a high potency microwave frequency towards the Iraqis to make them believe that what they were hearing was the 'voice of God' So dear reader, there is no denying that high microwave ultrasound, can, under certain conditions, enforce a change in the brain's mechanism to which it can falsely induce a state of fear and alarm through auditory and visual stimulus creating a sound or vision which 'really isn't there' Now we didn't have this type of apparatus back in 1917 unless of course (as some authors suggest) that it was there but confined within the locus of the environment, something earth based, a tectonic strain a movement of the Earth's crust scarping together emitting balls of light (which as we know can happen, more so in fault zones)

The work and research of Michael Persinger who is well known to the research community is given an airing here in this book. Michael goes into great detail about his theories and places them into the arena of the Fatima Event. Eg, magnetic fields, temporal lobe instability. Another author, Mario Simoes Ph.D. takes us on an educational ride of altered states of consciousness and how this too could have played a part in the Fatima Event. Yet another author, Gilda Moura looks at a Multi-Dimensional perspective and other levels of reality. I'll tell you what readers; this book sure has it all. How I wish a lot of different academics, scholars and researchers would lend their expertise onto Scotland's famous 'Livingston UFO Incident' I'd love to read a book where they all came together with their own theories and speculations, boy what a book that would be.

Let us not forget also that light phenomenon is a big part of the UFO subject. There is a big part of the book that draws parallels with the UFO subject. David Jacobs for instance tells us that some theologians speculate that these wonderful experiences may not be so wonderful after all, that they may in point of fact be tricks of the Devil to trick humans into believing in the second coming. David goes into great detail on page 157 about WHY the Catholic Church HAS TO Investigate visions of the (BVM) read the book to see why. Janet Elizabeth Colli Ph.D then discusses angels, aliens, and near death experiences and goes on to inform us that Physicist Janusz Slawinski demonstrated that dying organisms emit a burst of electromagnetic energy at death.

All in all then this book is a marvelous pot pouri of theory, speculation, fact, and wonder and as stated, brings together a wealth of top people in their field all who in their own way, look at the Fatima event with their own fine tooth comb. It's certainly an interesting read and one can take from this book what they want from it. Some readers will believe one theory whilst others will believe another, that's as maybe, but what sadly we are no further forward in understanding, is 'What exactly happened that day' ? Will we ever know?

Marion visions still occur to this day, but what would make it all so real and understandable, would be to capture a Marion vision by cam-corder, but until that day we can only speculate and wonder at the events on that October day back in 1917 to 70,000 awe struck people. The world ladies and gentlemen, is certainly a strange place made all the stranger by events like these.

Fatima Revisited: The Apparition Phenomenon In Ufology, Psychology, and Science is available from:Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk